


When the world ended

by rethrin



Series: Many Times Peter and Jared Cuddled [14]
Category: Franklin & Bash
Genre: Apocalypse, First Kiss, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2011-08-10
Updated: 2011-08-10
Packaged: 2017-11-11 07:09:39
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,164
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/475926
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/rethrin/pseuds/rethrin
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>I've chosen not to use archive warnings because there isn't really character death in this, but it's the end of the earth, so...</p>
            </blockquote>





	When the world ended

Some of the channels were saying nine hours, some were saying twenty. All of them were getting progressively more confused, with less information and more rumour and speculation and flat out panic. Peter cycled the channels one last time and then flicked the off switch.

"We can't just not watch," Jared said.

"Why?"

Jared opened his mouth, but he blanked. End of the world. The tv wasn't going to change that, it'd happen when it happened. But it was so quiet without the tv.

"So what? What do we do now?" Jared asked.

Peter stood up and stretched, he looked sick, but Jared supposed he did too. It was hard to look well when everything was ending. Everything. He looked around at all their stuff and then he thought about all the other stuff in all the other rooms and everyone else's stuff and tried to imagine no more stuff, and it was no good because none of it seemed real.

"We could have a game of pool?"

Jared snorted, but when he looked up Peter just clenched his jaw and nodded that he was serious.

"Oh yeah, we're just going to play pool while the world is ending."

"Why not?"

"Because we have to . . I mean we're meant to do something, I don't know, meaningful! Or stupid!"

Peter shrugged. "Why? It's too late to change anything now."

Jared sort of moved his hands, trying to say why Peter was so wrong, but the trouble was he didn't know if he was. They couldn't go out, it was mayhem out there. There weren't any phone lines. No way to get in touch with anyone else. And he didn't particularly want to sit and think. So he shrugged, and tried not to listen to the screaming at the back of his brain. He went to fetch beers.

After fifteen minutes when they'd potted one ball between them, Peter put his cue down. "Okay, so this was a bad idea," he said, and stretched his arms to stop them shaking.

It turned out ignoring the impending apocalypse was fine in principle, but really difficult physically. They were both trembling, their heartbeats were high, Jared's teeth were chattering although he wasn't cold, and Peter's insides clenched with fear at every noise, every shadow.

Jared gave a tight smile and glanced at the clock again. He didn't mean to, the clock was pointless now, time didn't really exist any more, the world was ending. 

Peter looked at his hands trembling, he swore and tried to shake it off. Then he put both hands against the wall at arms length, and leaned forward, stretching, letting his head drop, and when he stayed like that for a while Jared went over to him and ran a hand down his side.

"Hey," he said.

"I'm alright."

"Yeah, sure." Jared slipped between Peter and the wall, ducking to stand between his arms. "The world is ending, you're a-okay."

Jared reached up and stroked through Peter's hair, his other hand resting on Peter's neck. Peter straightened, up, which brought him in closer, he looked at Jared and questioned him a bit with his eyes, Jared's smiled back at him.

"I'm not trying to seduce you," he said with a tiny smile. He stroked his hand through Peter's hair again, and Peter moved even nearer without thinking.

"I wouldn't want to be with anyone else tonight," Peter said, and his voice was low.

Jared just shook his head, agreeing. "Let's go to bed."

"But you're not trying to seduce me?" Peter smiled and his eyes twinkled and Jared wondered if maybe he should be trying to seduce him. Peter Bash. It wouldn't be a bad way to go. But he shook his head.

"C'mon." Jared pushed a little and Peter went.

They went to Carmen's room, partly because they were missing her, mostly because it was cleaner than theirs. Jared kicked off his shoes and got under the cover, moving over to give Peter space beside him. Peter pulled off his shirt, leaving just an undershirt, and then looked down at Jared, half awkward until Jared smiled at him.

He lay down, and Jared moved immediately into his arms. He made a sort of sigh or a gasp or a huff, that felt like he was going to implode, and Peter held him tight. Their hands moved over each other, stroking as though it was the most normal thing in the world. Jared thought it should be strange, but it felt like not having this would be ridiculous. It felt human, touching each other purely for comfort, for closeness, something humans had been doing forever. Although forever was over now. He buried his face in Peter's chest and stroked his arm, and squeezed in close to him. They petted each other for a long time, and then Peter put a little distance between them, so he could look down at Jared. He bent his head and kissed his mouth, a long kiss, but just his lips pressing softly against his friend's, no more than that.

Jared smiled up at him, with a slight quirk. "Kissed by Peter Bash. I'm going to die a happy man." And his voice only turned slightly as he talked about dying, and Peter's eyes only flinched a little.

"I love you," Peter said, as though he needed to, and Jared's eyes were darker than Peter had ever seen them.

"Love you, too."

Peter kissed him again, just the same, and then settled Jared back against his chest and they both practised breathing.

"I was jealous of this," Peter said moments later. And when Jared asked what he meant with a questioning squeeze he went on, "You know, when you had girls over, I thought about this."

Jared tilted his head, "The apocalypse?"

"No, I did not worry that you having sex would bring about the apocalypse."

"Because I don't think it's my fault."

Peter shook his head seriously. "Nobody will be able to prove it anyway."

And Jared accepted this with a nod.

"I hated when they stayed the night. I was always waiting for them to leave. In case you might give them something that belonged to me," his voice was quiet but steady. "In case you loved them."

"Ah." And Jared felt like he was smiling inside for the first time since the news had started a couple of days ago. He waited a couple of minutes, enjoying the feeling. He nodded. "When you fell in love with Janie it felt like you'd punched me."

Peter made the softest noise, and his thumb rubbed against Jared's neck.

"I know," he said. Being honest seemed easy now. "But it was always going to be you."

"I know."

They both snuggled closer to each other, pressed as close as possible, and their breathing synchronised, their eyes closed and they didn't really need to say anything else.

They stayed like that for the next four hours and thirty seven minutes.


End file.
